Always Possibilities
by Keyote
Summary: A series of one shots that can either be connected to others in this fic or stand alone as they are. Reader suggestion for one shot ideas are welcomed and encouraged.
1. An Alternate Proud Failure

**AN: **The following is the first of a series of one shot stories, though the individual shots could get sequel stories if people are interested. Please read the bottom AN for more details on this matter.

**Always Possibilities**

**1st Story: An Alternate Proud Failure**

It was late at night within the Village Hidden in the Leaves; the night before the Third Round of the Chunin Exams were set to be held. And many of the residents had settled into bed early, eagerly awaiting the spectacle tomorrow's events would bring.

But at least one resident was not so lucky.

Naruto Uzumaki, Jinchuriki and ninja of the Hidden Leaf, lay awake in his bed, his eyes wide open as he stares blankly up at his ceiling. Truth be told, he had tried to sleep nearly two hours before, but every time he closed his eyes, he would see faces looking back at him. Faces that made him feel nervous and uneasy; making him doubt himself which happened more often than he would like to admit. And then, there was also the voices he would say he hears when he;s alone too.

He could see Neji and Gaara looking at him; he could hear the many voices of the villagers talking about him, about how he wasn't worth anything and he should just be kicked out of the village. He thought of Kakashi basically casting him off to the side in favor of training Sasuke exclusively for the third round and how that had made him feel. Sure, Kakashi had given him an explanation as to why he was being handed off to another, that closet pervert Ebisu, but Naruto still felt that it had been a cop out on his sensei's part. Just another means of rejection just because he wasn't as good as others.

Sure, he admitted to himself, Ebisu wasn't all bad as he did have some good ideas on how to help him; something Naruto was thankful for. And then there was that pervy sage helping him out too for what it was worth. Though he wondered if that summoning training would actually benefit him in any way during the third round?

A thought then comes to mind, making him raise his up into the air and he stares at it intently. As he does this, images of a certain fight from the preliminary round flash through his mind. Hinata facing off against her cousin, Neji. Neji's words had angered him and he had protested in the best and only way he knew how; getting angry and shouting at the top of his lungs.

What had taken him by surprise was how his words had affected Hinata. He was use to seeing her all shy, quiet, and rather reserved. But his words had lit a fire within her, making her finally stand up to her cousins put downs. At first, he thought it had just been the heat of the moment; that anyone saying thous words would have motivated her to fight back.

But as that fight went on, he began to wonder about that as there was several moments she had looked up at him, looked to him, as if she was reaffirming something to herself. Or maybe it was her way of conveying something to him? He hadn't given it a thought then, but now? He couldn't help but wonder.

And even when she had fallen and the fight was obviously over, she still stood up tall and strong. Despite the odds and the obvious agonizing pain she must have been in, she still stood up in defiance of the "fate" Neji proclaimed was her's to bare.

He then thought on his own actions. How he had jumped down onto the stadium, with Sakura and Lee alongside him, and how his attempt to strike Neji had nearly taken him out of the third round of the exams. His declaration to Neji by way of Hinata's blood and his learning that he would be facing Neji first off in tomorrow's exam.

"Hinata..." he says while bawling his hand into a fist.

Though it wasn't there now, in his mind he could still see her blood on his hand. A pang of regret passes through him as he realizes something. Following the preliminary round, he hadn't even bothered to go check up on her. Instead, he had followed Kakashi to the hospital and immediately starting going on about needing training. And no explanation was needed on what happened since.

And in all the time during the month he had available to him, he hadn't even once taken the time to pay her a visit. He had checked in on Lee following his success on summoning the Chief, due in part to being at the hospital. And it had been a good thing he, and Shikamaru by the fact he had been there, had as they had saved Lee's sleeping form from being possibly killed by Gaara in, what Naruto felt, was an act of revenge for hurting him during their fight in the preliminaries.

He had checked in at the front desk about Sasuke after that, before he had left, and had learned Sasuke had been checked out a while before. But now he realized, to his regret, that he had never checked in on Hinata. And that thought made him disgusted with feel himself.

He makes a vow to himself here and now. Once the Exams were over, he would make a better effort to interact with her and offer any help he could so she could become stronger too. After all, he realized that it wasn't just him that felt weak, rejected, and an outcast in this world. She must feel that way to, at least where her clan's concerned.

And he should ask Lee to join in too as all three of them, according to Neji, were failures. So it was only natural that the failures should work together to become stronger and prove that they could stand shoulder to shoulder with the so called genius's in the world.

Naruto lowers his hand back down, turns on his side and closes his eyes. He pushes both the images and the voices from his thoughts and is soon asleep, lost within the realm of his dreams.

There was another in this village who was also awake, though this particular entity didn't need sleep as sleep was something only a being of flesh and blood needed. And he wasn't exactly what you would call a creature of flesh and blood. But a mass of chakra in both raw energy and physical matter form.

Within its cage, sealed deep within Naruto's existence, was the Nine Tails. He growled a little at his Jinchuriki's thoughts. The boy was in serious need of help; though the fox wondered if it was even truly possible to help the helpless?

Naruto's meeting with him the other day had impressed him, as he had so told Naruto during that first meeting between the two. And the fox, as a reward for coming that far, had agreed to lend Naruto his chakra should he ever need it. But now, he wondered if that would ultimately become a waste on his part?

_Kyubi..._

The fox growls as the voice of his previous Jinchuriki, Kushina Uzumaki, plays in his head. How long had it been since he had last thought of her? She had been an...interesting one to say the least. As his third host, he would admit that she had been the kindest in her interactions with him. Mito had been more of a scolding mother type and as for Jubei? Well he cared not to think of that man if he could avoid it. Kyubi closes his eyes and allows himself to recall that moment, that night, when he was briefly freed from Kushina and then sealed into Naruto by the boy's father.

_The Nine Tails had just been sealed within Naruto, and Minato had collapsed to the ground as the Reaper took his soul as payment for a contract fulfilled. Kushina's tears as she looked down at her beloved flowed free like the rain. Why did this have to happen? Her eyes then fall upon their child, drawing out even greater tears at knowing he would be alone now. Well, they would always be with him in spirit, but she doubted knowing that would be any consolation when you are young._

_She lays back, next to Minato, and places Naruto between them as she feels her own life beginning its final fall. Her eyes then fall upon the seal, freshly forged on their child as her vision blurs. With the last of her strength, she places a hand on it and prays her words reach his mind._

"_Kyubi, I know you and I haven't had the best of relationships after I became your Jinchuriki. Even though I did feel a kinship with you in a ways because we were both burdened by fates we neither wanted or asked for. And yet, having you with me hasn't been all bad. In fact, it made my life a rather interesting one."_

_After a pause, she ask "I know I have no right to make a request of you. But please, hear it for me please. My son, Naruto. You and him will be together now for many years to come so I beg you, please...help him in any way you can. Guide him through his life, keep him on the right path, and protect him for me. You are the only one I can ask this of. After all, in a weird way, he's your son too."_

_As she draws her final breath, she manages to send him one final thought._

"_I leave my son...our son, in your hands, lord Kurama..."_

The Kyubi's eyes open wide as a thought crosses his mind. _**'When did Kushina learn my true name?'**_ He certainty never told her and he doubted she had learned it from Mito as she had never asked him nor had him ever told anyone. In fact, he and Mito had a strict no conversation policy between them.

Kurama sighed in exasperation, wishing he hadn't recalled those words. Now he felt duty bound to answer her final request. He wondered if this was a sign that he was going soft. Closing his eyes again, his chakra began to flow out from his cell, making a pool form just beyond that produced a mental representation of Naruto's sleeping mind.

"**Naruto, it's time to wake up"** he commands.

Naruto grumbles something, but otherwise remains asleep. Kurama tries again, getting an annoyed grimace to form on Naruto's face as he mumbles out "I don't wanna. Sleepy..." Naruto then turns on his side as his own particular way of showing he wanted to be left alone.

A vein pops out in Kurama's head and the fox wonders if this is how a parent would feel when trying to wake their lazy brat up so they could go to school? Knowing that he wasn't going to have any of this, Kurama takes in a deep breath, then releases it as a deafening roar that creates shock waves outside the cell.

Naruto, obviously, is awaken with a scream as he is sent flying back from the power in the roar into the darkened, cavern like sewer his mind was. After a moment, Naruto comes running back into view up to the cell and glares at Kurama.

"What the hell was that for, you damn fox? Can't you see I was trying to sleep here" yells Naruto.

"**Wakey, wakey, little brat"** retorts Kurama, unable to repress a grin which makes Naruto even madder. **"How'd you like your new alarm clock?"**

"How did I like my new alarm clock?" asked Naruto before scowling and bringing a fist up and aimed at the fox. "How about I come in there and show you how much I liked it?"

Kurama chuckles as he says **"Be my guest, little brat."**

Naruto huffs as he nearly follows through on his challenge, but some sense kicks in inside his mind which makes him decide to call that plan off. "Anyways, why did you wake me up? Wait...don't tell me its already morning?"

"**That would be funny if it was true, but no. You just fell asleep and morning is still hours away."**

"OK, so why did you wake me up then...well, mentally speaking that is?" asked Naruto.

"**I've been doing some thinking, based on part due to your own thoughts before you fell asleep. And I've decided, though it goes against everything I am, to give you a little more help."**

"Seriously?" asked Naruto, getting what he assumed was a nod from the fox in return. "Oh yeah, now that's what I'm talking about. So Nine Tails, what additional help do you plan on giving me?"

"**First, I have a proper name, you know. And I would appreciate it if you would call me by my proper name."**

"What? You have a name, seriously?" asked Naruto, getting a glare as a response. Naruto then places both hands against the back of his head and grins as he adds "Boy, I never would have guessed it."

"**Probably because of how you humans have viewed us Tailed Beast in the past. You all only see us as weapons, as means to an end and NOT as living creatures in our own right. But we can think, feel, and talk just like you all can. And you, of all people Naruto, should understand how we feel and what we have to endure in this world."**

Hearing this does make Naruto stop and think. He realizes that the fox was right and that up until now, he had only thought of the Nine Tails as some evil, mindless monster that caused havoc and destruction across the land. It had never occurred to him that maybe he could think and feel like he could and that his actions in the past were due to how he himself was being treated by humans.

"So, what name do I call you then?" he asked, wanting to show he understood.

"**Kurama; that's the name I was given when I came into being."**

"Kurama..." says Naruto, repeating the name several times in his head before adding "...alright, I understand. I won't forget it, Kurama." After a pause, Naruto decides to continue their initial conversation. "So, you said you wanted to give me more help. What do you have in mind?"

"**The eight tetragram seal that was used to seal me inside you has a few bonus features built in to it by the one who placed it on you..."**

"The 4th Hokage..." says Naruto, wondering what these bonus features were.

Kurama nods, then continues by saying **"I will trigger one of these bonus's now."**

Kurama's body begins to glow as another pool of chakra forms beneath Naruto. At first, Naruto is worried and wonders what is happening, but he hears Kurama tell him to relax and not to fight back. Naruto soon finds himself covered in chakra like a cloak. Looking back, he sees eight chakra tails form from the cloak, followed by a sudden sound that makes him look back at the seal placed upon the cell.

And then, a third figure appears appears in the room, standing between Naruto and Kurama's cell. A man with hair much like Naruto's, wearing a cool white long coat with red flames along the bottom edges. He smiles as he looks down at Naruto and says "Naruto, so we finally get to meet at last."

**(act break)**

"Lord Fourth...?" says Naruto, stunned to see the 4th Hokage, his personal hero in life, standing before him. "What's going on? Why are you here in this place?"

Instead of answering him immediately, the 4th Hokage looks around and says "Boy, kind of a shabby looking abode, huh?" He then turns back to look at Kurama and says "I never thought I'd have to see you again, Nine Tails."

**"Nor I to you, 4****th**** Hokage."**

Minato closes his eyes to take a moment to sense everything out and is surprised to find Naruto was still sleeping soundly in his bed. He opens his eyes and ask "I assume you had something to do with my being here now?"

Kurama nods and says **"I was aware you had added several conditions within the seal formula that would trigger when certain conditions had been met. I simply triggered your presence by faking an eight tailed transformation release."**

"I see..." says Minato as he nods his head in a sage like fashion. "Tell me, why did you fake an eight tailed transformation to summon me here?"

"**I figured it was the best solution to the current issue. The brat needs some guidance in his life and right now, you are a better candidate than I. Besides, I can't ignore Kushina's dying wish now can I?"**

"No, I guess not..." says Minato before chuckling a little. "Boy, she was right about you. You really are a big old softy, aren't you?"

"**Why you..."**

"Hey, Naruto to the both of you" shouts Naruto, getting their attention. "Have you forgotten that I'm here, still waiting for some answers."

Minato chuckles nervously as he turns back, scratching the back of his head. "Sorry, Naruto. I do tend to get distracted easily. But not anymore. I'm giving you my full attention now."

"**4th Hokage, I'm aware you have limited chakra within you to be here so as a gesture of kindness from me, I will lend you some chakra so you can remain here for as long as you need to" **says Kurama before chakra begins to flow out from the cell, passing into Minato's form.

"Thank you, Kyubi" he says in response. He then walks forward and places a hand on Naruto's shoulder and says "OK, I guess I better get started explaining things to you then..."

"First, mind telling me how you name my name?" asked Naruto, glad he was finally getting the attention.

"Why wouldn't I know your name, Naruto? I am the one who gave it to you after all" says Minato.

"You're the one who gave it to me? Wait, are you saying that you're my...?

"Well, actually..." says Minato, breaking in as he scratch's the side of his head. "...the one who gave you the name was technically Jiraiya-sensei. Both me and your mother just agreed that we liked the name and would give it to you upon your birth."

"You...are you saying that I'm your son?" asked Naruto in disbelief. In all his years, never had he ever considered the possibility that he was the son of the 4th Hokage. Not even once.

Minato nods, then says "Yes, Naruto. I'm your father."

Naruto lowers his head to hide his eyes and Minato notices tears fall and hit the ground. "My father..." says Naruto before running forward.

"Son..." says Minato as he spreads his arms wide, expecting to be hugging his son in just moments. As such, he fails to notice Naruto ball his hand into a fist which he then sends slamming into his father's stomach. Suffice to say, Minato wasn't expecting them as he finds himself gripping his stomach in pain.

"Why, why did you seal Kurama inside me, your own son? Why did you have to go and die, leaving me alone for all these years? Do you have any idea just how hard its been for me?" cried Naruto as Minato recovered and looked at his son with a sympathetic smile on his face.

"I...it was..." Naruto starts to say till he feels Minato's hand come to rest atop his head, musing his hair.

Naruto looks at his father, who says "Sorry Naruto, I assure you that both events weren't planned."

Naruto sniffles before wiping his eyes and says "Yeah, I know that. Don't worry about it, pops."

"Well, it looks like I have some explaining to do regardless" says Minato.

"**Before you do, 4th Hokage. I will summon her here as well. After all, I'm sure you both have a lot to talk with him about and will want to tell him" **says Kurama, getting both Naruto and Minato's attention drawn to him as he begins to affect the seal again.

Another ghost like apparition appears in the room and quickly becomes solid, revealing a woman with long, beautiful, cherry red hair. She opens her eyes, seeing Naruto before her and says "Naruto..."

Naruto blinks as he stares at the woman, aw struck by just how beautiful she was. Was she who she thought she was? "Mom...?" he says as he prepares to run to her and hug her.

Then Kushina's eyes fall on Minato. "MINATO..." she cries out, her voice full of joy as she throws herself at her love. Minato wasn't prepared for her sudden embrace as he nearly falls back and is sent into a spin while hugging her back.

"I've missed you...so much" she said as she hugged him tighter, tears falling from her eyes.

Minato nods as he closes his eyes and buries his head against his shoulder, saying "Yeah, I've missed you too, Kushina."

"Hey, mom...dad, what about me here?" shouts Naruto, huffing from the sudden lack of attention.

A vein pops out in Kushina's head as she releases Minato, spins around, and pops Naruto atop his head with enough force to make a pump form. Her hair flares to life as she shouts "You shouldn't interrupt a tender moment between your parent's, ya know."

Both Minato and Kurama sweat drop at the scene, both recalling just how scary Kushina could be when mad, even if it was just for a moment. Kushina then realizes what she had just done, then laughs nervously as she rubs the back of her head, much like Naruto does, and says "Sorry, Naruto. I tend to act first without thinking. It's a bad habit of mine, ya know."

Naruto finally recovers and says "You act first and think second, like me? Then you really are my...?"

Kushina nods and says "That's right, I'm your mother, Naruto..."

Naruto's embrace comes just as she finish's talking, his hug as tight as Minato's had been as he shakes and hiccups and cries. "I've...always wanted to me you" he says between hiccups.

Kushina smiles as she hugs him back and Minato, feeling left out, walks over and joins in the hug. For what felt like an eternity, the three of them stay like this, not wanting to moment to end.

"**Hm, such a KODAK moment. Makes me wish I had a camera on me" **says Kurama, naturally bringing the heart felt scene to an end.

"Oh, shut up Kurama. Can't you see we were having a moment here?" asked Kushina.

The fox chuckles, then says **"All the more reason for me to have stepped in and ruined it. After all, the boy here doesn't have all day...well, all night as the case would be. Anyways, I'll lend you some of my chakra like I did with Minato so you too can stay here for a while longer. After all, there is a lot of things you both need to tell the brat and vice versa."**

"Yeah, you're right. Thank you, Kurama...you big old softy" says Kushina, the last being said jokingly.

Kurama sighs before closing his eyes, allowing them to focus on the matter at hand. "So, what do we tell him first?" wondered Kushina as the three of them break away.

"Well..." says Minato before snapping his fingers which makes some chairs appear for them to sit on. "...lets take a seat as there's a lot to tell and standing through it all will be a chore." Once they had all sat down, Minato says "Well, let's begin with telling Naruto about his family history."

Over the next two hours, Naruto learned about his family. He learned of his connection to an actual Clan and possessing his own blood limit, the Longevity kekkei genkai, and how he had all the makings of being a seal master in his blood, which excited him as he actually had a potential talent for something.

Minato and Kushina then related to him their individual stories of their younger years and how they ultimately came together. Naruto was shocked to hear about his mother nearly being kidnapped by the Hidden Cloud Village and that it had been his father who had saved her, an act that had led to Kushina falling in love with him, starting their future romance.

Soon, the conversation turned to the night Naruto had been born and about the mysterious masked man who had caused Kurama's attack. Naruto was shocked to learn that his mother had been Kurama's Jinchuriki before him and was angry about the whole deal. But Kushina managed to calm him with her explanation as to why Jinchuriki were needed. Minato also explained to Naruto about why he was made a Jinchuriki.

Once they had finished their collected back stories, Naruto then began to fill them in on his own. Kushina was obviously mad about how Naruto had been treated and wondered why lord 3rd and their friends within the ninja community hadn't tried to help him or had done so little. Minato countered and said there was no way for them to know what was going on as they knew only as much as Naruto knew.

Besides, Minato added, his treatment could have been a lost worse than what it actually had been.

He had only been shunned by the civilian population, indicating Sarutobi had felt in necessary to keep Naruto's parentage a secret for his own protection. After all, he the outside world knew Naruto was the son of the infamous Yellow Flash, then it could have put his life in danger from those who would want revenge against Minato. And Naruto was already in danger enough as it was just by being a Jinchuriki.

Also, from Naruto's story, it sounded like he wasn't lacking in the friends department anyways as he had played with Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, and even Shino during the academy days. While social interactions outside of the academy seemed to be spotty, at least he wasn't completely alone which was enough to cool Kushina down.

Then the Q and A got to the meaty parts.

"So, Naruto. Do you have a girlfriend yet?" asked Kushina.

Naruto blush's at her question as he looks away nervously. "Well, there is this one girl. I wouldn't say she's my girlfriend per say. But I know she likes me. She's just the hard to get type, ya know?"

"Ya know, huh?" says Kushina, chuckling as she looks at Minato. "I guessed he did pick up my personality quirks. And here I was hoping he'd be more like you in that area."

Before Naruto could respond to that, Kurama butts in and says **"Yeah, sure she likes you, brat? You can tell she's playing hard to get just by how much she yells at you for all the stupid crap you pull in her presence, how she rejects your every date request, and stares at Sasuke Uchiha with little stars in her eyes and hearts shooting into the air from her whole being."**

"Shut up, Kurama" shouts out Naruto in retort. "What do you know about love and romance anyways?"

Kurama smiles as he says **"Nothing, to be honest. But I still know a lot more about it than you do."**

Naruto huffs again, trying to think of another argument he could use when he feels Minato place a hand on Naruto's shoulder; an act meant to calm him. "Naruto, why don't you tell us all about this girl and your relationship with her."

Kushina adds "Make sure to tell us everything and be as furrow as you can. As your parents, it is our duty to help you out by giving you advice about your love life."

"OK, here's the thing of it" says Naruto as he begins his talk about Sakura and Sasuke as well. Once he was done, he awaits his parents idea on what they thoughts.

"Well, it seems like you really like this girl, Naruto" says Minato.

"But..." adds Kushina, Naruto not liking the but there. "...it's kind of obvious to the both of us that she just doesn't feel the same, ya know. From what you told us, she seems totally fixated on Sasuke and at the moment, I don't think you'll ever be able to change her mind on that, no matter what you do."

"Wait, are you saying my love for Sakura is a sinking ship that can't be saved?" asked Naruto.

"**Man overboard, little brat" **joked Kurama, making a vein in Naruto's head. **"I think that way of looking at it is as good as any."**

"Oh man, that sucks ya know" says Naruto as he becomes mopey and depressed.

Kushina feels a pang of sadness for her son. Rejection can be a hard thing to accept. "I'm sorry, Naruto. I wish I could give you some advice that could help you out with your love problem. But forcing another to love you when the don't just because you love them isn't fair to that person and trying to force them into loving you isn't a good way to show how you feel about them at all."

"Yeah, I know that, mom. But it still sucks though" says Naruto.

"Wait a moment, Naruto" says Minato, suddenly. Naruto and Kushina look at him and Naruto wonders if his dad had an idea about how to get Sakura to at least give him a chance.

Seeing the look in his son's eyes and understanding what he was thinking, Minato is quick to say "Now Naruto, don't think I have an idea on how you can woo and win this Sakura girl. That's not what my idea is at all."

"Oh..." says Naruto, becoming depressed again.

"What I was actually thinking was this. Naruto, in your pursuit of Sakura's heart, do you think it's possible that you may have failed to notice another girl possibly liking you?" asked Minato.

Naruto gives off a fake laugh and says "Yeah right. Fat chance of that happening. All the girls I know are like Sakura. They're all Sasuke fan girls that hope to become his wife one day."

"Are you really sure about that, Naruto?" asked Minato, wondering if that was really true.

"Why don't you tell us about all your female acquaintances and what your relationship with each of them is and we'll be the final judge on that matter" adds Kushina.

"Well, OK..." says Naruto, not really sure what the point was as it was hopeless in his mind.

After he was done talking about all the girls that had been in his class, he stops and tries to recall the names of some of the girls that he knew from around the academy. "Hm, interesting" says Minato, breaking Naruto from his train of thought.

Kushina nods in agreement which makes Naruto ask "Wait, what do you mean? What's interesting?"

"Well, you said all the girls you know are mad crazy about Sasuke. Yet, there was one girl in your story that didn't seem to be a Sasuke fan girl from your description" says Minato.

Naruto gives this some thought, then realizes that his dad was right. "Oh yeah, I guess Hinata isn't now that I think about it. Well, she's never shown any outward interest in him as far as I know. But she's so shy and quiet, you tend to forget shes even in the room most of the time."

"Hinata?" says Kushina now, taking on a thinking like look. "Tell me, would he last name happen to be Hyuga by any chance?"

Naruto nods and says "Yeah, that's right. Hinata Hyuga; her dad is the head of the Hyuga Clan."

"Yup, I thought so, ya know. I do recall Hikari saying that she was going to name her child Hinata if she was born a girl. Looks like she won that bet with Hiashi" says Kushina.

"Naruto, tell us more about Hinata and your interactions with her over the years" asked Minato.

"Tell you about Hinata, huh?" says Naruto as he closes his eyes an thinks about it, his face looking like the face of one who was thinking to hard; you know the one he usually does when he's shown thinking.

"Well, she's shy and quiet, like I already said before. She's nice to everyone, never talking smack our acting all superior. She seems to suffer from self doubt and a lack of nerves. But when she's around me, she always becomes tongue tied and can't seem to say anything. She's always blushing and fidgeting around two, poking her fingers together and twiddling her thumbs. If you ask me, she's really weird like that, ya know."

"No, it's not weird at all, ya know" shouts Kushina as she smacks Naruto atop his head on impulse. She then blush's and says "Oops, sorry Naruto. I lost control again, heh heh."

Naruto rubs the bump as he looks at his dad and ask "Did you have to put up with this a lot?"

Minato smiles and says "Only when she was pregnant with you, son. I was smart enough to know what NOT to say around her."

"Oh, come on, Minato, I wasn't that bad was I?" asked Kushina. She then looks at Naruto and says "Honey, how she acts around you isn't weird at all. In fact, from what you have told us, I dare say little Hinata has quiet the crush on you."

This surprises Naruto as he had honestly believed no girl would ever actually like him...well, at least at this time due to how often Sakura rejected him when he asked her out and he had figured he would have to become Hokage before his love life could finally take off...with Sakura or so he had hoped.

"Hinata? You think she has a crush on me?" asked Naruto, still not sure he he could believe that as it still seemed impossible to him. "How can you be sure she likes me like that?"

"Trust me, Naruto. People don't blush or become super shy around someone without liking them like that. Take my word for it" says Minato.

"Listen to your father, Naruto" adds Kushina. "He would know better than anyone seeing he himself was like that back when we were your age towards me and it wasn't until he saved me from the Cloud ninja that I finally realized that. Before then, I was chasing after Fugaku Uchiha, Sasuke's father, much like most other girls were back then."

_'Seriously, mom had a crush on Sasuke's dad back during her academy days. I guess boys in the Uchiha Clan are lucky in that respect. But given how Sasuke views his pursuers, maybe its not so lucky after all' _thinks Naruto before asking "So, what should I do then?"

"Ask her out on a date or two, give her a chance and give yourself a chance to see if you can find another love besides Sakura" says Minato.

"But what if I do and afterwords, I still find myself only being interested in Sakura though?" asked Naruto.

"Maybe that will happen and maybe it won't. You won't ever know till you give it a try, Naruto. But I can tell you this much at least. If you don't at least try to find love elsewhere, instead keep yourself stuck on one girl only, you may end up like that perv sensei your father had" says Kushina.

"Perv sensei? Wait, you mean pervy sage?" asked Naruto, the recalling that he had been his father's sensei in times past.

"Pervy sage, huh? I like that, hah" laughs Kushina.

"I don't know the details as Jiraiya-sensei never talked much about his genin years, but I heard from miss Tsunade, who was a teammate of his, that he had chased after her for years and, in doing this, failed to notice the girl who really liked him. And, like how Hinata is with you, she was shy and unable to approach him directly do to personal insecurities. Jiraiya-sensei did eventually learn of her feelings for him, but by then it was to late as she had been killed while on a mission. And since that day, Jiraiya-sensei had chosen to stop actively pursuing girls as he felt it was a fitting punishment for never noticing her."

"Though he still flirted like crazy though" adds Kushina. "He just wasn't serious about his flirtations though."

Naruto gives what he had heard some thought, then says "Well, I guess I should give her a chance with a date or two. At least then I'll know and won't look back later in life with regret over having not done it."

"**I hate to break into this family discussion, but time isn't on our sides no more. It's nearly three in the morning"** says Kurama.

"Boy, time flies when your having a moment with the family" says Kushina.

Minato gets up and says "Anyways, Naruto. Ready to learn some cool stuff from your parents?"

Naruto jumps out of his chair, excited, as he says "Oh yeah, this is gonna be awesome."

**(just before eight that morning)**

The remaining time Naruto had spent with his parents that night had been them teaching him several of their more skilled techniques. Minato had told Naruto he would learn the bulk of their jutsu through Jiraiya himself, so they focused on several techniques he could use during the Chunin Exams.

At the end of the night and the time had come for them to go, Kurama revealed that he would place special chakra signatures within them so he could summon them back again in the future. The down side was it would only be once a month and only for a few hours. But still, that was better than nothing.

After an emotional goodbye, Minato and Kushina faded back into the ether, leaving Naruto with both their love and hope. But Minato had pointed out to Naruto that Sarutobi had given him something, a box filled with unknown items, years before and that he should finally open it.

After waking up, Naruto had recalled that the old man had given him a sealed box when he had been nine and told him to open it when he had gotten home. He was just about to open it when his stomach rumbled, begging for ramen and Naruto, being who he was, quickly pushed the box aside for later as he ran off to Ichiraku's to chow down. When he had finally gotten back home, he had completely forgotten about the box and had even tripped over it, not paying attention. Still not recalling its purpose, Naruto had tossed it into his closet, out of sight and mind, forgotten until now.

Upon pulling it out, Naruto was quick to open it and teared up at what he saw inside. It was many of his parents old things; clothes, scrolls containing jutsu information, their forehead protectors, pictures from their lives, and even a letter about them from the Hokage.

Naruto opens the letter and finds the old man had revealed his parentage to him in it, but told him to keep it a secret for his own safety and, if he ever had any questions, to come and ask him as, again for safety reason, he wouldn't bring it up directly himself. Naruto smacked himself for his one track mind. If he hadn't been so ramen grazed, he would have known about his heritage years ago.

That was an aspect of himself he seriously needed to change.

After eating breakfast, which was ramen of course as it was the only food item he had, he makes a note for himself to go shopping later for some different food items. He then bathes and goes to get dressed in his usual orange colored jump suit, but stops mid dress. Looking at his orange top, he tosses it over onto the bed and, driven by an impulse, goes back over to the box and digs into it, wondering if their might be something in here in his size?

At the very bottom, he finds two pairs of clothes that he recognized from a picture of his parents from when they where genin. Obviously, his mothers cream colored tunic top and dark blue skirt wouldn't look right on him, but he does find his dad's dark pants and white jacket with blue twin stripes racing down the sleeves was still looking in fairly good condition, so he decides to put them on alone with a mesh shirt he had in his closet. Once he was done, he looks at himself in the mirror and compares what he sees with the picture of you then young dad. Apart from a slight difference with his hair, the whisker marks, and him having his mothers face, Naruto found he was the spitting image of his dad.

He liked it and so it would become his new look for now.

Naruto sets out, walking through the village and seeing everyone's excitement for the third round of the Exams. While his first impulse was to head right for the stadium and await the start of the third round, which was still an hour away, he decides to make a quick detour to a certain place.

After ten minutes of walking, Naruto enters the training ground zone and soon enters the area where he had been made an official genin by Iruka. This place had special memories for him and he hoped it would reinvigorate him for the battles to come.

But he wasn't alone as he sees a familiar form, her back to him, looking at one of the training logs.

"Hinata?" he says, making said girl jump in surprise. "Are you feeling better now?"

Hinata eeps, realizing that it was Naruto that was behind her and, being driven by the shyness she always had around him, is quick to move around to the far side of the log, using to hide herself somewhat. "Naruto, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the stadium, preparing for your match?"

"I decided to take a detour on my way there. This is the place where I first became a genin so I thought coming here would help bolster my confidence a bit" replies Naruto, seeing her differently than how had before due to what his parents had said. She really was shy around him. While still weird, he couldn't help but think it cute to in a way.

"Oh, that makes sense, I guess..." says Hinata.

A few minutes later, they had shifted their positions some what. The training log was still between them, but Naruto was on one side, leaning against it as his arms were folded behind his head while he looked to the sky and Hinata was opposite him on the other side, her head tilted towards the ground as her fingers nervously fidgeted in front of her chest; her eyes looking around nervously as she tried to think of something to say to him.

"Um...Naruto..." she says, worried that her attempt to make some space between them would be seen by him as her wanting to keep her distance from him which wasn't true. "...are those new clothes you're wearing?"

"Hm?" he says, himself wondering if there was something he could do to make her feel more comfortable around him. "Oh, my clothes? Nah, they aren't new per say as they once belonged to my dad when he was my age. But they are new to me and by wearing them, I feel more confident in myself right now, I guess. Like my dad's with me in spirit or something."

"Oh, I see" she says back. "So, Naruto. Does this mean you do know about your parents then? I heard that you didn't know about them and..."

"I learned about them last night" Naruto cuts in. "It was quite a surprise when I found out who they were too. I'll tell you about them sometime if you're interested."

"I wouldn't mind, Naruto. But only if it's OK with you that is" says Hinata.

After an awkward pause between them, Naruto sighs inwardly as he wonders what he could do to break the ice between them and get this moment they were having moving. "Say, Hinata. Neji's your cousin, right?"

"Yeah..." she says. "He one of the strongest in the clan."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense" says Naruto, his voice revealing his nervousness.

Hinata hears the nervousness in his voice and is quick to says "But you're pretty strong too, Naruto. I'm sure you'll win the fight against Neji."

Naruto laughs and says "Yeah, I am pretty strong...huh?" After a pause, he sighs and says "To be honest, Hinata. If I were to look back on my life and reevaluate myself in the third person, I would have to admit that overall, I've been nothing but a big failure."

"No, that's not true" says Hinata suddenly as she pulls away from the log, running to stand before Naruto who is surprised by her sudden change in demeanor. "You're not a failure, Naruto. You're..." She suddenly realizes her previous action and becomes nervous again as she looks away, unsure what to say or do now.

Naruto, noticing her shy and insecure nature assuming control again, steps away from the log and places a hand on her shoulder. "Tell me, Hinata. Tell me how you really feel? Please."

Hinata looks into Naruto's eyes, seeing his need to hear her reply. Hinata looks deep inside herself and finds the courage she knew she needed right now. "Well, your kind and honest and you always see the good in people; their worth, even if they can't see it in themselves. No matter how difficult things become for you, no matter how many times you fall, you always pick yourself up again and keep moving forward. I think that's the sign of true courage in someone. And Naruto, I think you are an incredibly strong person."

She then runs forward, past Naruto, and goes behind the log again, but peeks out enough to look at Naruto as he turns back to look at her as she says "And I wish I could be more like you, Naruto."

Naruto is stunned by her words as he looks at her, a light blush forming on his cheeks. "Hinata...?" he says, unable to form any more words.

"**Cue a heart skips a beat moment, brat."**

Naruto ignores Kurama as he smiles, eyes closed as he says "Thanks Hinata." He then turns back and leans back against the log again and says "Ya know, I was feeling nervous last night, so much so that I had trouble falling asleep. Then I learned about my parents and in that, what I can be capable of in life and that made me feel better, more confident. And now, after hearing what you had to say, I'm feeling like I can take on the world right now."

Hinata blush's as she smiles and steps back out in full, saying "I'm glad I could help, Naruto."

"Well, I better get going. Otherwise, I'm gonna be late for my match. Hinata, make sure you get a good seat to watch my victory at" declares Naruto before walking down the path, heading to the stadium.

"OK, I will" says Hinata as she holds a closed hand over her heart.

Then Naruto comes to a sudden stop, looks back, and says "Say, Hinata?"

"Yes, Naruto?" asked Hinata, wondering what he wanted to ask her.

Naruto looks away nervously as he scratches his hair, then he ask "Well, I was wondering...if it was OK with you that is...well, would you like to join me at Ichiraku's after the exams are over for a bite to eat?"

Hinata blushes at the indication of what Naruto was asking her. "You mean, like a date, Naruto?"

"Well, I guess it could be like a date. But I was thinking more along the lines of a date if that was..."

Naruto didn't get to finish as Hinata had shot to stand right before him, both hands clasped together over her heart as she says "I would love to, Naruto?"

"OK then, it's a date then" says Naruto before turning back to continue walking. He waves his hand and says "Let's make it at eight tonight, Hinata. See you then..."

Hinata nods as she watches him walk away till he had faded from sight. Her blush grows more and more as Naruto's words repeat over and over. Finally, Hinata starts jumping excitedly in the air in a circular motion while cheering out "I'm going on a date with Naruto, I'm going on a date with Naruto. This is the best day ever..."

As Naruto walks down the path, Kurama speaks up in his mind. **"Seems like you made her day, brat. So, you really are giving her a chance then?"**

Naruto smiles inwardly as he mentally says _'Yeah, I am. To be honest, Kurama. I'm actually looking __forward to it.'_

"**Well, putting that aside for now. Do you think that plan you and your parents came up with will work in that fight with the girls cousin?"**

_'As long as I can get the first hit in, and that it's in the right spot, then yeah. It should work. And if I mess up, then I'll improvise as best I can' _thinks Naruto, knowing that he could...that he would, succeed.

In the following fight with Neji, Naruto's strategy did work though just barely. What was the strategy, you ask? Well, just before Neji could land his first series of hits on Naruto, Naruto had planted both his hands against Neji's shoulders. At first, this seemed to do nothing. But Hinata was the first to discover what Naruto had done through her Byakugan.

You see, Naruto had placed a seal; two identical seals to be more exact on each of Neji's shoulders. Though they had taken a few moments to take full effect, the effect they had on him was to cut off the flow of chakra to his arms, thus making any Gentle Fist attacks pointless. And it wasn't until after he tried the 8 Trigrams that he realized what Naruto had done to him. The rest of the fight had been more or less about physical blows and skills. And in the end, Naruto won do to his higher stamina and endurance. But the end result with Neji was still the same as his fight with Naruto had opened his eyes to the truth and became a changed person.

As for Hinata and Naruto? Well, perhaps that can be told another time...

_**So ends the first of the Possibilities fic.**_

_**What happens from here? Well, that's up to you the readers. What other possibilities would you like to hear about? Perhaps alternate versions of existing chapters? Maybe something like Naruto being Hinata's Jonin sensei and how this would effect their relationship? Perhaps more original stories and AU based worlds? Maybe something like Naruto being Hinata's Jonin sensei and how this would effect their relationship? The choice is and will ultimately be in your hands.**_

_**Let me know what you would like to read about in your reviews or via PM's. But as for the next chapter, I already have an idea and this is what it will be about.**_

_**Ino comes up with the perfect way for Hinata to get Naruto to finally kiss her. Ramen flavored lip stick. What will happen? Well, you'll have to tune in and find out.**_


	2. KissxHinata

**Always Possibilities**

**2nd Story: Kiss x Hinata**

**AN: **_This chapter is set in an AU world much like our own and is a High School oriented fic. This one shot is based on a episode of KissxSis. Perhaps you've heard of it? Any who, let's begin...and also, this chapter is rated **"M"**due to lime level perversity..._

Is was another typical day at Leaf High School, located on the north side of Konoha City. The bell that signaled the end of today's classes had just rang out and the students were getting up from their desk and grabbing their bags as they prepare to head home.

"OK class, just remember to read chapter forty eight of your history books for review tomorrow" instructed Kakashi Hatake, their history teacher in school.

"Aye, sensei" some of them say in unison while the rest either didn't care to respond or were to busy thinking and focusing on other matters.

"Hey Shino, wanna head down to the arcades?" asked Kiba.

"Maybe later. I need to go home and feed my bugs first" replied Shino.

"Yeah, I need to go home and get Akamaru myself. Anyways, see you there, buddy" says Kiba before running out of the room.

"So Sakura, heading to cheerleader practices again?" asked Ino, making sure her skirt was straight and not showing anything beneath.

"Yeah" replied Sakura, Ino's best friend. "I am the squad leader after all."

"I remember. Anyways, give me a call when your done though" says Ino as Sakura heads towards the exit, but stops at the door to wave goodbye. Ino then sees Hinata finishing getting her things together and walks over to her.

"So Hinata" says Ino in a cheery mood. "What's going on?"

"Huh?" says Hinata, jumping a little as she wasn't expecting anyone to come talk to her. "Oh, Ino, it's just you." Hinata then recalls her question and says "Nothing really. I'm just on my way home to read up on the chapter Hatake-sensei told us to read."

"Yeah, yeah, that's all well and good" says Ino hastily, wanting to get to the main topic. "So tell me, Hinata. Have you and Naruto...you know...enjoyed the motion of the ocean's together yet?"

"The motions of the ocean?" asked Hinata, confused.

"Come on, you know what I mean" says Ino wondering if she had forgotten about their previous talk. "I mean you taken him for a ride yet? Has he pooped your cherry? Introduced you to little Naruto yet? Have you and him had some S-E-X action going on at home?"

It had been a week since Ino had discovered Hinata's secret crush, namely Naruto Uzumaki. And Ino had told Hinata that if she wanted to become his wife one day and pop out his kiddies, she needed to take the initiative and jump that boy while she could.

"NO, we haven't done anything like that. We haven't even kissed each other yet" cries out Hinata, wishing she could end this conversation now, but knew Ino would just follow her and keep it going. "Why do care so much about me and Naruto getting together like that anyways?"

"Because I'm a sucker for forbidden romances and nothing can be more forbidden than incest, right?" says Ino.

"Um...but me and Naruto aren't blood related. We're just step siblings to each other" corrected Hinata.

Confused? Here's the deal. Naruto is the son of Minato and Kushina Namikaze and Hinata, along with her twin sister Hanabi (yes, they're twins in this fic) were the daughters of Hiashi and Hikari Hyuga. Now it all started when Kushina became sick and eventually died when Naruto was five. A few months later, Hiashi was killed in a car accident as he was coming home from work. Minato and Hikari, having been good childhood friends since elementary school, decided to live together with the three kids to make things easier on them all. Over the next two years, Minato and Hikari had come to love each other, or fell back in love as they had dated breathy when they had been little, before Kushina and Hiashi came into their lives. They married and Naruto officially gained two step sisters in the deal.

And of course, the did live together and were happy. Hikari was even pregnant with her and Minato's first child to boot. There was just one problem of course, both Hinata and Hanabi were madly in love with Naruto and wanted to be with him. Hinata was more shy about her feelings where as Hanabi was the more vocal, but Hinata was the one who usually ended up in fan service style moments with Naruto that always nearly ends with them kissing or other, more intimate actions.

"Details, detail" says Ino, waving off Hinata's words. "That just means you won't have to worry about kid when one comes. Anyways, you need to step up your game or you lose out to your own sister. Do you want that, Hinata? To lose to Hanabi where Naruto is concerned?"

"No" yells out Hinata quickly, then she blush's at how loud she had been.

"Well then, you need to be more assertive and get your hooks into him before she does" instructs Ino.

"I know that" says Hinata. "But I really don't know what to do? And to be honest, I think Naruto's just as nervous as I am."

"How do you mean?" asked Ino.

"Well, he's had several chances to kiss me. A few have even been as a result of something I did, even if it was only an accident at the time. But he always becomes nervous and backs off at the last moment" says Hinata.

Ino takes on a thinking pose as she repeats Hinata's story in her head. "So Naruto is as nervous about this as you are? I guess he must be thinking it would be incest too despite the no blood relation between you two. Still there has to be something that will make him...aha, I have an idea."

Seeing Ino's grin makes Hinata feel nervous for some reason, though she was betting it was a good reason. "Um...what is it, Ino?"

Ino turns to look at her with a devious stare. "Oh, I think I'll keep this to myself for now. But I'll tell you once I can set the plan in motion. You just go home for now and try to work both him and yourself up in the meantime. Toodles."

And with that, Ino leaves Hinata and heads towards the hallway. As she walks towards the school entrance, she pulls out her cell phone and auto dials a person from her friend list. "Hey Shiho, it's me, Ino. Get Shikamaru and come over to my place. I have a little job for the two of you."

**Four days later**

"You wanted to see me, Ino?" asked Hinata during lunch break. The two girls were meeting outside in an empty hallway.

"Yeah, I have a little something for you" says Ino as she digs into her school blazer pocket. "Ta-da" she proclaims proudly, pulling the object out and showing it to Hinata.

"Lip stick?" asked Hinata.

Ino pulls the lip stick away then uses her free hand to hold up her index finger out at Hinata. "Correction, not just any lip stick. But ramen flavored lip stick."

"Ramen flavored?" repeated Hinata, confused.

"I hear your doubt by I kid you not" says Ino before breaking into her explanation as to the origin of this odd little number...

**four days prior, early evening**

"Thanks for coming, guys" says Ino gratefully as she leads Shiho and Shikamaru into her room.

"Not a problem" says Shiho, taking a moment to adjust her thick set glasses.

"I hope this is important Ino" says Shikamaru in his usual tone. "I have a test to study for tonight."

"I'm sure you'll ace it even if you don't study" retorts Ino. "You just don't like being asked to do anything ever."

"Speaking of that? What did you want to talk to us about, Ino?" asked Shiho as she sits in the chair next to Ino's computer. Shikamaru leans up next to the wall by the door.

Ino sits on her bed and says "I was hoping you could use your chemistry skills to make something special for me, Shiho."

"Well of course I can if it's possible" says Shiho, wondering what her request could be. "What exactly?"

"Ramen flavored lip stick" says Ino.

"Ramen flavored lip stick?" says Shiho, surprised in both tone and facial reactions.

"Man, what a drag. I knew this was going to be a waste of time" complained Shikamaru.

Getting over her surprise, Shiho "That's a pretty tall order to make. You know that, right?"

"Yeah, I know it's asking a lot and all. But still, do you think you can do it?" asked Ino hopefully.

Shiho takes on a thinking pose, contemplating this for a few minutes, then says "Well, I guess it is possible. By tell me why ramen flavored anyways? Don't tell me you've actually given up on Sasuke and are going after Naruto now? Because if that's the case, I have to hand it to you that your plan is pretty smart in the thinking."

"What? Me going for Naruto? No way" says Ino, shaking her head repeatedly. "This isn't for me, but Hinata. She's been wanting to kiss Naruto for some time, yet is to nervous to do it herself and Naruto has been hesitant to kiss her in turn. So I felt ramen flavored lip stick would help them both out."

"I see. Makes sense now that you mention it. But why are you wanting to help Hinata hook up with her brother for?" asked Shiho.

"Naruto and Hinata are only step siblings; no blood relations exist between them making it non incest related" points out Shikamaru.

"Oh yeah, forgot about that" says Shiho, looking back at him then back to Ino.

"Well, do you think you can do it or not?" asked Ino.

"I can give it a try though I won't promise anything" says Shiho.

"Say, Ino" comes Shikamaru, getting her attention. "Why did you call me over here for anyways if all you needed was Shiho's chemistry skills?"

"Simple; I was hoping you'd put that brain of yours to work and help Shiho out in this matter. After all, you're the smartest guy I know and if you can't help her figure this out and make it happen, then there really is no way to make it happen" says Ino, though she did have another reason.

She knew Shiho had a huge crush on Shikamaru and the more time they spent together the more likely Shikamaru might finally notice her or Shiho found her own courage to confess to him.

Shikamaru sighs, saying "What a drag. Fine, I'll help her if I can though like she said before; don't expect any miracles here."

"Thanks guys, I really owe ya one if you succeed" says Ino.

"Well, we better getting going then and start working on this request. I'll let you know when we're finished" says Shiho as she and Shikamaru go and leave, though Shiho stops at the door and looks back at Ino, mouthing a silent thank you to her for getting Shikamaru to help her and allowing her to spend time with him.

"I'm counting on you two" says Ino quietly to herself.

Three nights later, Shiho calls Ino and tells her that had finished and had somehow made it happen. She would hand off the lip stick to her in the morning. Now all that was left was Hinata's part to play...

**back in the present**

"So that's how it happened?" says Hinata as she takes the lip stick from Ino, twisting the bottom to reveal the odd colored stick beneath. "Does it really taste like ramen though?"

"Give it a lick and see for yourself" says Ino.

Hinata does so then takes a moment to let her brain process what she was tasting. "Mm, Miso Pork flavored ramen. Naruto's favorite."

"Yeah, I was impressed with their research into his like among his likes" adds Ino.

Hinata twist it back to cover the stick, then says "So I can get Naruto to kiss me with this, huh?"

"Well duh, girl. You know he's a freak where ramen is concerned. He'll never turn down the chance to have some, to taste it. This is especially true of Miso Pork flavoring. You put that on and not even the jaws of life will be able to separate you two" says Ino.

Hinata blush's at the thought. "I'll finally be able to kiss Naruto..." She then slides the lip stick into her own blazer pocket.

"Now that just leaves one issue" adds Ino, getting Hinata's attention.

"You mean Hanabi..." says Hinata, getting a nod from Ino.

"Yeah, your annoying twin who always seems to bust in on when ever you and Naruto are about to have a moment" says Ino.

"Well, I kind of do the same to her when she's about to have a moment with him" notes Hinata.

"True, but its always accidental and by chance in your case. You just happen to show up at the right time. Hanabi, on the other hand, seems to have a six sense about when you are going to have a moment and she goes out of her way to cock block you" says Ino.

"Cock block?" repeats Hinata, blushing from the use of the word.

"That's right, Hinata" says Ino defiantly. "So in order to do this, you need to remove Hanabi from the equation and I have an idea about that..."

**three night later**

"Huh? You're going out sister?" asked Hanabi.

"Yeah, Ino needs me to help her with something and I'll be gone about forty or forty five minutes" says Hinata.

"Oh, OK then. But what about dinner? I know it's my turn to do it tonight, but I was hoping you could observe me like usual so as to make sure I don't screw it up" says Hanabi, worried she would make herself look bad in Naruto's eyes.

"Hanabi, I've been teaching you for two months now and I think its time for you to be set free and see if you can do it without any help" says Hinata.

"But what if I goof..." argues Hanabi, but Hinata is quick to speak up.

"If you do, then take it as a learning experience. Besides, big brother won't look down on you or think any less of you if it doesn't go right. He's knows you're still learning and perfecting your culinary skills. Now what you really need is self experience and a little faith in you self" says Hinata.

"Yeah, I guess you're right, sis" says Hanabi.

"Well, I better get going then" says Hinata as she heads to the door. "See you in about an hour and good luck."

Once Hinata had exited the house, she starts walking towards Ino's till she was sure Hanabi wouldn't be able to see her, assuming she had gone to the door herself to watch her older sister leave and not make a move to go up stairs to Naruto's room. When she was sure it was safe, Hinata makes her move and begins heading back home.

This was the plan according to Ino. First, wait till a night came along when both Minato and Hikari would be out. Then leave to go to her house, making Hanabi think she would be gone for an hour and leave making dinner up to her. This way, Hanabi would be to busy to try to make a move on Naruto herself. Then Hinata needed to sneak back into the house and up stairs to Naruto's room, go inside and lock the door. And then, the fun could begin.

Question was how to sneak back in? Simple enough as Hinata had opted to open the window in her mom and step fathers room and climb through, making sure to close it afterwords. She does this, but ends up falling into the room with a loud thud. For a second, Hinata feared Hanabi would have heard the noise and come to investigate, thus ending the plan before it could even really begin.

But Hanabi never came to look.

Confused, Hinata sneaks out of the room and peeks into the kitchen and finds the reason why Hanabi didn't come. She had the earphones from her Ipod in her ears and she was busy swinging her hips back and forth to the beat of the music she was listening to, oblivious to everything else in the world around her. Hinata sighs, making a mental note to scold on about that later as she didn't need any distractions clouding her mind till she had become a cooking pro.

But for now, it worked to her advantage as she heads up the stairs and is quick to enter Naruto's room and lock the door behind her. She then looks to Naruto who was busy working on homework over at his desk and as such, was unaware that he now had company.

"Um...Naruto, big brother..." she says shyly.

"Aahh" he yelps, obviously surprised by Hinata's voice. Looking back, he sighs and says "Oh, it's just you, Hinata, Geez, don't scare me like that."

Hinata giggles, then says "Yeah, sorry Naruto."

He waves it off, saying "It's cool. Anyways, did you need something?"

For a moment, Hinata hesitates as she begins to have doubts about this. Was this really OK? Was this even right? To manipulate Naruto into kissing her using ramen flavored lipstick; was that wrong? A voice then rings out in her head, telling her she'd regret not doing this more than doing it.

"Um...well" says Hinata, deciding to do it after all. She then reach's into her skirts pocket and pulls out the lipstick, handing to Naruto. "Here, Naruto. For you..."

Naruto takes it and looks at it confused before twisting the bottom to expose the lipstick itself. "Hinata, I don't understand? Why'd you give me lipstick for and what's with the weird coloring?"

"Actually, Naruto. This lipstick is of a special kind, you see. It's ramen flavored" says Hinata.

"Ramen flavored? Seriously?" asked Naruto, looking at the lipstick then at Hinata who nods, then back at it. Curious, he sticks his tongue out and lightly touches it to give it a taste. "Holy...is this Miso Pork flavored ramen?" he asked her.

Hinata nods, then says "Yes, it is. I asked Ino for some help and she had Shiho and Shikamaru make this for me."

"I see" says Naruto, sitting back in his chair, looking at the lipstick with awe. "That's pretty cool, ya know. But Hinata, why did you need Ino to help you with and how does Miso Pork Ramen flavored lipstick fit into the equation?"

"Well..." says Hinata shyly before extending her hand out and asking "Give it to me for a moment, Naruto." Though he was confused, Naruto does as he was asked and hands it back to Hinata.

Now holding it, Hinata says "I need to wet it first" before licking the lipstick, then she begins to apply it to her moist lips. Naruto's ever widening eyes stare transfixed on her actions as she makes sure to get her lips sufficiently covered in the stuff, smacking them out once she was finished.

"Here you go, Naruto..." she says as a fierce blush forms on her cheeks. "Have a little taste if you want."

Naruto's mind practically explodes as he realizes what it was she was implying, what it would mean that he...they, would be doing. Hinata leans forward, placing her hands on his knees as she brings her face to being level with his. Naruto, blushing fiercely as well, quickly turns away and sputters out "No, w-we can't."

Hinata cocks her head to the side, confused, and ask "But why not, Naruto?"

"Because...um...kissing is forbidden, isn't it? I mean, unless you are boyfriend and girlfriend or if you're married" he says, his voice trembling from nerves.

For a second, Hinata wonders if this had been all for naught, but then an idea comes to mind and she says "But this isn't a kiss, Naruto."

He looks back at her, now even more confused than he had been before, saying "Huh? It isn't?"

"No, Naruto. This is...this is just a taste of ramen. Don't you like ramen, Naruto?" asked Hinata.

"Well, yeah, of course I do. It's my favorite food after all, Hinata" was his reply.

"Especially Miso Pork flavored ramen?" she adds.

"Of course. It's the best kind there is, after all" he says proudly.

"Then wouldn't it be a waste to not at least taste some more then?" asked Hinata. "After all, Shiho and Shikamaru did work so hard to make it after all."

Naruto gives this some thought and realizes Hinata's words did make since. "Just a little taste at least?" asked Hinata, leaning in a little closer.

Well, he knew he couldn't say no now. Naruto bows his head as he claps his hands together and says "Thanks for the taste, Hinata." After another moment of them looking at each other, Naruto finally leans in as well, sticking his tongue out as their lips draw close together.

Naruto's tongue presses lightly against Hinata's lower lip, beginning to circle in a clock wise manner from bottom to top and back down to bottom over and over again. After a few full circles, he places more pressure with his tongue against her lips, making Hinata moan as her legs quiver and her body shakes ever so slightly. Both their heads beginning to move in a rhythm pattern with one another.

Down stair, a sudden sensation comes over Hanabi, one that only happens when big brother and Hinata were in danger of having an ecchi moment together. "Uh oh, my perversity senses are tingling" she says as she looks away from the stove.

Had Hinata been lying to her about going to Ino's? Had she snuck back in without Hanabi not hearing her? Wanting to make sure, Hanabi heads over to the front door and finds it shut. She then looks along the edges carefully and finds the little straw she had placed on the door to let her know if it had been opened and thus, causing the straw to be bent. But there was no sign of it being bent that she could see.

"Hm, weird" she says as she looks around. Had she just imagined it? It wouldn't be the first time that had happened with her. Shrugging, she heads back into the kitchen to continue making dinner.

Back upstairs, Naruto and Hinata finally pull away from one another, a small strand of saliva connecting them together is pulled apart till it breaks away. Naruto, astonished by what was happening, says "Wow, that was so much tastier than normal."

"Are you done, Naruto?" asked Hinata, looking away shyly as her blush increases a little. She then shows him the lipstick and says "We can do this again. As many times as you want to. I don't mind."

"Yeah, I guess another round won't hurt nothing, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think it'll be fine too" says Hinata as she applies some fresh lipstick for him to taste.

"Hold on a second, Hinata" says Naruto suddenly, getting her to stop. "Here, sit on my lap" he says which she does, positioning herself upon his right leg. "Let me put it on for you."

"Um...OK, Naruto..." she says as she hands him the lipstick which he begins to apply to her lips, making sure to give it an extra thick layer of coating. He then places the lipstick back on his desk and ask "Hinata, may I start tasting the ramen now?"

"Anytime you want, Naruto" she says back as she runs her hands around him, placing them on his back and grabbing a hold of his shirt. Naruto also brings his hands onto her back, placing one just below her neck and the other to the small of her back, pulling her inwards towards him. Both her legs were spread open to his sides.

Back down stairs, Hanabi gets the feeling again and once again, goes to check the door, finding her straw still un-bent. Though she once again returns to the kitchen to continue working on breakfast, she couldn't help but think something was feeling very off right now.

Back in Naruto's room, Hinata's body was riding up and down on Naruto's lap as they continue their little session. By now, Naruto had managed to lick away all the ramen lipstick that was on Hinata's lips but rather than go to apply more, the two had remained, kissing each other intently, breaking away from one another in quick, short burst, showing that their tongues had been wrestling frantically against each others, saliva not having a chance to break before they were back to kissing again.

_'This is...amazing. I'm actually kissing Naruto, making out with him'_ thinks Hinata as they break again, but then Hinata pulls her hands from his back to rest them on his cheeks, bringing his lips back into contact with her's again so they could continue.

_'Oh no, if this keeps going on any more, I won't be able to...'_

They break apart again, both taking a much needed moment to breath. "Hinata, stick out your tongue for me, please" asked Naruto.

The request takes Hinata by surprise, but she nods and says "OK" before sticking her tongue out like asked. Naruto then takes the lipstick and applies a heavy coating on the center of her tongue. "Now keep your tongue hanging out..." he instructs her.

Before she can make any response, his tongue as again touching her's before his whole mouth envelops it, sucking on it without mercy. _'What is this? It feels so good. I...I don't care where Naruto touches or sucks next just as long as it doesn't ever end'_ thinks Hinata as their lips once again meet in a powerful embrace.

After a few moments, Hinata breaks the kissing, breathing and panting heavily as she ask "Wait, Naruto. Let me rest for a bit..." But she isn't able to say more as Naruto, either not hearing or caring, pulls her back in and continues their unending make out session. Hinata's arms once again find his back, gripping him tightly as she feels something powerful building up within her body.

Finally, Hinata can't take any more as she breaks the kiss again, letting out a sudden cry as her body goes rigid, making Naruto freak out and feel he may have done something wrong and had hurt her in some way. Hinata then collapses against him, breathing and panting heavily.

"Hinata, are you OK? I didn't..." asked Naruto.

"No, I'm fine..." came Hinata's reply, wondering what that was she had just felt. "My legs are starting to go numb, Naruto. Is it OK if we switched positions?"

"Sure, anything you want, Hinata" says Naruto as she gets up from his lap. It is then they both notice it. There was a very large and very noticeable stain on Naruto's pants near the knee and Hinata finally noticed her panties felt heavier, soaked even.

She now realizes what had just happened. She had just had her first real orgasm.

"I'm so sorry, big brother...I dirtied your pants and..." says Hinata, feeling ashamed and embarrassed. She also mentally says to herself _'And I'm now so wet down there too.' _Without realizing it, she grabs hold of her near knee length skirt with both hands, clutching it as if her life depended on it.

Naruto doesn't respond at first, instead choosing to look at her with an intense focus like nothing she had ever seen from him before. Not even when he was having a staring style match with his rival, Sasuke. Her eyes move around rapidly, a sign of her nervousness.

"Naruto...is it OK if we keep going?" she asked, surprising herself in the saying of that. And even more surprising was seeing Naruto nod. She then reaches down and takes his hand, leading him over to his bed and they both then sit down.

Naruto had remembered to grab the lipstick before being led away and holds it up to Hinata, offering to put more on her. Hinata blush continues to increase as she ask "Do we really need that now, Naruto?"

Naruto looks at it then at Hinata, seeing her in a way he never had before. He then tosses the lipstick off to the side, seeing it land on the floor and roll under his bed, then he turns his attention back to Hinata.

Down stair, Hanabi has the feeling again. "OK, that does it. I'm gonna go check in on big brother just to be on the safe side." Hanabi then places the spatula down and begins to head towards the stairs.

Back in Naruto's room, Hinata allows herself to rest her head on Naruto's shoulders and she ask You really do love the taste of ramen the most, don't you?"

"Yeah, I always have...and I thought I always would too" says Naruto.

Hinata pulls away, blinking in surprise at hearing that. "Too?" she asked.

"Yeah, but now I think I found something that taste even better than ramen" says Naruto.

Hearing that makes Hinata's heart skip a beat. "Well then, Naruto. Have another taste if you want too."

Hinata then lays back in his bed, her legs spread open and making her panties visible for him to see. She then holds her hands out, wanting to welcome him into her as she says "Come Naruto and have as much of me as you want..."

Naruto's eyes trace her over, from her radiant face to her now very noticeably large breast outlined through her top, to her panties and seeing the stained dark along the bottom, and her slender and silky legs. It was enough to bring his already existing erection into a full force awakening.

"As much as I want?" he repeats, his imagination seeing Hinata fully naked before him and that makes him decide that a line had been crossed and there was no going back now.

Hinata nods, letting him know it was OK. Naruto then claps his hands together, bowing his head and saying aloud "Thank you for the service" before leaning in to begin the main course.

**CONK**

Hanabi's karate chop slams into the top of Naruto's head with enough force to make several pumps, stacked atop one another, rise up as his eyes go wide then roll back into his head.

"Dinner is ready, you perverted big brother" she yells at the top of her lungs as Naruto falls forward onto Hinata, clearly unconscious now.

Hinata sweat drops at seeing her little sister's enraged face looking down at her. "Um...Hanabi, I can explain..."

"SO, YOU WERE GOING OVER TO INO'S FOR A BIT? WELL THEN HOW ABOUT I HELP YOU WITH THAT, BIG SISTER..." says Hanabi as she cracks her knuckles. Though Hinata was scared about what was about to happen, there was still one thing she knew for a fact. Well, two things actually.

One, despite the forthcoming punishment, it had all been worth it in the end.

And second. Ino was right, Hanabi was a little cock blocker, huh?

_**fin...**_

**AN2: **_Well, I hoped all you sick perverts out there liked this one. Because of the "M"rated nature of this chapter, I've decided to make this "M" rated though not all stories will be needing that high a rating, though some will._

_Anyways, the next chapter will be based on user _**_dragonball256_**_'s request for a one shot that ask what if Naruto attacked the Gokage Summit and had to be stopped by Sasuke, Hinata, and the rest. Note that I may not release this chapter next weekened as I want to take my time with this and give it some serious thought on how to make it both good and believable._

_See you again next week or the weekend after if I need more time with it..._


	3. The Secret Assassin of the Root

**AN: **This chapter of AP was requested by **dragonball256** and begins at the end of chapter 455 and the start of chapter 456 respectively (of volume 49 of the manga). The request?A scenario involving Team 7 reuniting at the Gokage Summit, except Naruto has become the villain and Hinata happens to be there along with the others. While not exactly like this, this will be a close approximation of the request. Read on to understand what I mean...

**Always Possibilities**

**The Secret Assassin of the Root**

Danzo, along with his two chosen companions, Torune and Foo, silently made their through the thinned out section of the forest, having set out to the Land of Iron for the Gokage Summit. In a general view, this mission was an important as an alliance between the five nations would give them to power to destroy the Akatsuki threat once and for all.

But for Danzo personally, the success of this mission would solidify his worth in the minds of those who doubted him and insure his status as the Six Hokage of the Hidden Leaf.

There were still some issues to be sure. But he had already made arrangements to have those annoyances taken care of.

Torune, once a full member of the Abarame Clan before faking his own death in order to join Root, comes to a stop as does Danzo and Foo. "Lord Danzo..." says Torune, turning his head ever so slightly to his left.

"I know."

Danzo plants his cane firmly into the ground, keeping it propped up as he uses his now freed left hand to reach up to the wrapping covering his right eye. "A rare, actual battle...perfect to exercise this out of practice body..."

From the surrounding tree line, several ninja erupt into view, each brandishing swords as they move in to strike at Danzo. "Don't interfere. I shall take care of them myself..." orders Danzo as he exposes his right eye, revealing a blood shot Sharingan from beneath the wrappings.

Danzo then breaks into four rapidly made hand signs, then he intakes a deep breath as his would be assassin's drawn in towards him ever closer. _'Wind style; Breath of Death.'_

The masked assassin's sees this attack to late to do anything as they find their bodies sliced and slashed violently by the wind jutsu, leaving their blood to blast out all over from the deep gashes being made. The assassin's falter in their attacks as each slam into the ground with some degree of painful force.

Some had been killed just from the initial attack, but a few were alive still. Danzo then places his left hand back on the cane and twist the top a little, then lifting it up to reveal his cane also concealed a sword within it. Danzo then casually walks over to each survivor and delivers the finishing touch.

"Damn..." says the last of the laid out assassin's just as Danzo silences him by slicing his blade into his neck. A suddenly glint of metal catches his eyes and Danzo uses his sword to bring the dead assassin's body up to use as a shield, guarding himself from the swarm of shuriken that had been sent at him from afar.

"Seven, eight, nine, ten..." says Danzo at the total count as he swings his blade wide which sends the assassin impaled on it flying as his eyes focus on the last assassin who had remained hidden within the treeline. "...and you make seventeen in all" he adds as the man, realizing this mission was a failure, turns and makes a run for it.

"Sir..." says Foo, already preparing to go after him.

"There is no need to fear" says Danzo as he turns and walks back over to the section of the cane which was still sunk into the earth and returns his blade to it. He then brings his index and middle fingers up to his mouth and whistles out a long, low sound.

"None will escape" he adds. After a few tense seconds, there comes a scream from the forest, signaling that the last assassin was now dead.

Foo, a former member of the Yaminaka Clan who, like Torune, had faked his own death in order to join the Root and had even dyed his own hair to further hide his true identity from the world. He walks up to one of the dead assassin's and kneels down, pulling the mask off him to confirm something.

"These are remnants of the Han'nya masked Black Ops from the Land of Woods that we slew in the past" notes Foo before returning to his feet.

"They've always been like this..." notes Torune. "Looking for the slightest opportunity to strike. Seems coming out into the open is going to increase our headaches in various ways."

"Ninja belong to the world of ascetics, once. To be nameless was a source of pride" says Danzo as he pulls his cane free and takes several steps forward. "But by exclusively controlling both the surface and the underground, one can truly strengthen both village and nation."

There is a pause as the secret fourth member of Danzo's group emerges from the shadows of the forest, his bloody right hand dragging the body of the last assassin behind him.

"I shall insure this summit succeeds and make the other Shadows acknowledge me as Hokage" says Danzo as his secret agent comes to a stop before him, letting the lifeless body drop down onto the ground. "Then even the Jonin Council will have no choice but to accept me as well."

He this places a hand on his agents shoulders. "My time has finally come..."

"And what if the other shadows and the council refuse to see you as Hokage, lord Danzo?" asked Torune.

"Then for the sake of the shinobi world's future, we will simply remove them."

"Right, Naruto Uzumaki?"

Naruto, his crimson irises staring forward blankly and lifelessly, simply nods in response.

**(Konoha)**

Kakashi peeks inside another tent, and finds no sign of Naruto within it. He lets out a sigh before moving on to the next one. From what Sai had told him, Naruto and the Cloud ninja had come into conflict over Sasuke, resulting in Naruto getting his face beaten in rather badly.

Sai had ultimately stepped in and stopped it and, in the aftermath, had brought him to a tent to get some privacy. After Kakashi himself had arrived and the three had taken a moment to chat a little, it had been decided that they, along with Yamato, would sneak out of the village to find the Raikage while he was en-route to the Gokage Summit and plead to him directly over Sasuke's case.

Kakashi and Sai had both left Naruto alone so he could get ready for the trip; Kakashi having taken off to find Yamato and Sai to scout out Danzo's men in order to plan out the best method for them to sneak out of the village undetected.

Kakashi doubted this would succeed, but he knew that once Naruto had gotten something into his head, he would never let it go. So the best thing to do was to let him try. Still, he wondered if he should pose the question to Naruto he knew was in his thoughts. If the Cloud had killed Sasuke, would Naruto be willing to forgive the person who had killed him? Would Naruto be willing to forgo revenge for the sake of peace? This was something he believed Naruto needed to think about, otherwise his views would seem more self serving than what he may of thought they were.

But when he had gotten back to the tent with Yamato in tow, they both found Naruto missing. They were now looking high and low for him, fearing Naruto may have already taken off to find the Raikage as this matter was obviously something he wouldn't want to wait any longer than needed.

"Kakashi..." comes Yamato as the wood style user arrives at his side again. He then shakes his head, letting Kakashi know he hadn't had any luck in finding Naruto.

"Same here" says Kakashi as they both walk to the next tent.

"You don't think he...?" asked Yamato, fearing the answer.

"I would want to say no, but this is Naruto we're talking about here" says Kakashi as they stop in front of the next tent. "I fear that even resent events, Naruto will still act recklessly where Sasuke's concerned..."

"What about Naruto and Sasuke?" asked Sakura, emerging from the tent Kakashi had been preparing to look into. "What's going on, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi sighs, then says "Naruto went after the Cloud ninja after the encounter you all had and asked them to be lenient with Sasuke. They refused so I decided that we could approach the Raikage directly and make a plea with him, though I doubt it will be any different with him. But we can't find Naruto anywhere now and I fear he may have taken off on his own while Sai and myself prepared for the trip."

Sakura slaps her forehead in aggravation, saying "Naruto, you idiot..." She then looks away and thinks _'You should have at least taken me along. After all, I want to save Sasuke just as much as you do.'_

"I'm afraid the situation may be worse than we think" says Sai, finally arriving on the scene.

"What do you mean?" asked Yamato.

"I...believe lord Danzo may have taken Naruto with him" says Sai.

"Wait, he took Naruto with him?" asked Sakura, shocked that someone like Danzo would do that given the situation and all.

"Why would he do that, Sai? I have no doubt Danzo would have known about the exchange between Naruto and the Cloud ninja and that taking him along could cause nothing but trouble for him" asked Kakashi.

"Well, he..." says Sai, not sure how to tell them. Team 7 was already well aware his primary mission was to keep an eye on Naruto, to make sure he was kept safe and didn't do anything stupid that could endanger the village. But trying to tell them the truth would likely activate the seal Danzo had placed on his tongue to insure his silence.

Kakashi was aware of this though and, being a former Anbu captain, and an idea of what may be going on, though he didn't like it. "Danzo has done something to Naruto, hasn't he?"

Sai looks at him while considering his options. Finding one that could work thanks to Kakashi's former Anbu life, he says "Rule 18 of Anbu code; Danzo's personal version of it."

"Rule 18? Wait, you don't mean..." says Yamato, his own Anbu experiences making him know as well.

Kakashi looks at him and nods, saying "Brainwashing and mind control are allowed in extreme circumstances."

"Wait, what does that mean?" asked Sakura, not liking where this was going.

"Sai, did Danzo brainwash Naruto?" asked Yamato.

Sai doesn't respond, but he does make a motion with his hand to give his confirmation.

"Then it must have happened in the past, before Naruto became a Genin. Possibly before he even entered the academy as lord Hokage had difficulty keeping his eyes on Naruto 24/7 back then" says Kakashi.

"I can say when because I do not know. But it was in small installments over several years" says Sai.

"Wait, what are you saying? What's going on?" asked Sakura.

"Danzo has turned Naruto into a sleeper agent for Danzo's Root organization. An assassin he can call on at any time and control when the need arises" says Yamato.

"He views Naruto as a weapon because of his status as a Jinchuriki. And for a man like Danzo, a weapon that can't be controlled is a weapon that can be used against the village and he won't allow something like that so long as he has any say so" adds Kakashi, wishing he had taken the time to have Naruto examined back when Team 7 had been formed for this danger, not that Danzo would have made the truth easy to find.

"No way, Naruto..." says Sakura as she tightens his fist in anger. The next time she sees Danzo, she was going to have a little chat with him about this. "But why would he take Naruto with him...?"

"The Gokage..." says Sai, getting their attention. "His success at the summit is key to his official rise to the position of Hokage and lord Danzo will do what ever he has to for that success to happen."

"And if the other Kage refuse to accept him, he'll simply have Naruto kill them then" says Kakashi, his blood running cold from the thought.

"But that..." argues Sakura, thinking that even Danzo wouldn't go that far.

"Sakura, make no mistake. That is something he would do" says Sai. "That's just the kind of man Danzo is."

"Then we need to go after them. If he uses Naruto to kill the other Kage, then he'll become an even more wanted criminal than Sasuke is, even if he was being controlled" says Sakura.

"Agreed..." says Kakashi.

"We should probably bring one or two more with use to help track Naruto down quicker. Hinata for example..." says Yamato, thinking that Hinata's Byakugan would help them locate Naruto quickly once they had arrived at the Summit's meeting spot.

"No..." says Sakura, her voice rather louder than normal. "She still hasn't fully recovered from the injuries she suffered during Pain's invasion. Besides, Kiba and Akamaru can do just as good a job with their sense of smell.

"Alright then..." says Kakashi, feeling that there may be another reason why Sakura was objecting to Hinata coming along. "Let's go find Kiba and Akamaru, then we'll head out."

As the four of them take off, Sakura thinks on this matter. And yes, there was another reason for not bringing Hinata along. She knew Hinata cared deeply for Naruto. The fact she was willing to sacrifice herself to save him from Pain was proof enough of this. She felt that because of this reason, Hinata was reckless and if Naruto was really under Danzo's full control and if Danzo had Naruto call upon the power of the Nine Tails, he might enter the four tailed state again and Hinata...she would be injured by him while trying to save him just like Sakura herself had been during the incident before.

And she just didn't want to put Hinata into that kind of situation; seeing Naruto when he is like that.

But no sooner had they left, the tent opposite the one Sakura had been in opens and Hinata steps out, having heard everything while she had been taking a moment to rest. "Naruto..." she says, knowing what it was she had to do as she heads off to gather her own team for this task.

**(several hours later)**

"Something's just not sitting right about this" notes Ao, his personal observation of the situation at hand. The meeting of the five Kage and the leader of the samurai had started off well enough, but had quickly devolved into some sort of blame game filled with yelling, anger, and mistrust. "I need to check this out. Chojuro, prepare yourself..."

The young, sickly looking man who was the Hidden Mist last remaining Swordsman looked at his elder with confusion, wondering what he meant as Ao makes a hand sign, activating the secret he had hidden beneath his right eye patch. _'Byakugan...'_

It only takes an instant for Ao to see the source of the oddities that were occurring here. And as he had both suspected and feared, it was all coming from the would be Hokage, Danzo. _'What the...? How can this be? The chakra color of Danzo's right arm and shoulder as well as the color of his right eye...? There's no mistaking this chakra. It's...Shisui's Uchiha's...'_

Ao is quick to move past the Mizukage, and act that takes her by surprise as he says "Lord Hokage, I ask that you show us your right eye, the one you have chosen to keep hidden beneath the cloth wrappings. Right now, I insist..."

The Mizukage looks to Ao, then to Danzo and back to Ao again, obviously confused by what was going on. The Tsuchikage, on the other hand, was a little more vocal in his own personal confusion. "Just what is this about?" asked the large nosed old man.

Danzo looks at Ao, his features neutral, as Ao says "Your right eye, I recognize the chakra pattern of it. It originally belonged to Shisui Uchiha. I'm assuming that you stole it from him and transplanted it onto yourself. I know from personal experience that Shisui had the power to go into the minds of others using his ocular power, induce phantom illusions, thoughts, and feelings, and thus is able to control them to some degree...and worse is that the victim never once questions what is going on, unaware of the fact that they are being controlled."

The Raikage's face darkens as his eyes blaze in anger. "Hokage, don't tell me that you've been manipulating Mifune here...and possibly us as well?"

Mifune looks at the Hokage, his own eyes narrowed in a dangerous fashion. Ao continues by saying "My right eye is also a spoil gained from the last war, obtained from a fallen Hyuga. It was because of this Byakugan that I was able to see the dark treachery of the former Mizukage and learned of his manipulation of the 3rd Mizukage who was also Jinchuriki of the Sanbi."

The Raikage slams his fist together as he roars out at Danzo "YOU..."

But before any action could be taken, a white Zetsu rises out from the opened center of the table, grinning like an idiot as everyone's attentions fall onto him.

"Why hello there..." says Zetsu as his finish's growing out of the ground.

Outside the structure, in the falling snow, was the Taka as they finally arrived at their destination. Sasuke takes a moment to study the structure before them, knowing that within was one of the three surviving figures who were responsible for Itachi's suffering.

"So, you think this is the place?" asked Suigetsu following a whistle.

"Given the amount of samurai guards patrolling the area we had to dodge around earlier, I would say so" notes Jugo.

"Karin..." says Sasuke, his head turned just slightly towards her.

"I'm on it" she says, already making a hand sign to maximize her sensory abilities. After several moments, she says "Yeah, he's in there based on all the high level amounts of chakra I'm sensing within. All that could only belong to Kage level ninja."

"Alright..." says Sasuke, turning his head back towards the structure before walking forward. "Let's get this over with."

As they find a door way in and pass into the darkened hall, Karin detects something else. "Sasuke, I'm also feeling another powerful chakra signature coming from this place, very close to where the Kage's are at. And it feels similar to that Eight Tails guy we fought before."

"What? You mean we may have to fight another Jinchuriki on top of eliminating the Kage?" asked Suigetsu, not liking their odds even more now.

"If there is a Jinchuriki here, we'll have to capture him too. But at least he should be the last one if I recall correctly" says Jugo.

Sasuke's face darkens from the thought as he hadn't expected this turn of events. _'Naruto...'_

As they pass around a large pillar, Karin suddenly stops and turns her head to the right. "What's the matter, Karin?" asked Sasuke.

"The samurai patrolling the grounds...their movement's have suddenly changed, becoming more erratic. I hope I'm wrong but I think they might know that we're here."

"It must have been Zetsu" says Jugo.

"Great, we should have known that jerk would" growls Suigetsu, but is stopped from saying more by Karin who clasp her hand over his mouth.

"Quiet, I can sense a squad heading this way."

_'I guess we have no choice then'_ thinks Sasuke as he removes his cloak and the uses a kunai to position it on the pillar. _'No matter. They will make a good warm up for me...'_

Sasuke then orders Karin to find cover due to her lack of offensive abilities. Karin, of course, doesn't argue as she quickly finds a high point from which to conceal herself. Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Jugo also hide themselves and once the first wave of Samurai had arrived, launch their surprise attack against them.

Though they possessed great skill with the blade, Sasuke's skill is greater and it isn't long before that first wave lies dead at his feet. But more begin to arrive. But before Taka could mop up these annoying flies as well, the ceiling above them explodes and three figures fall down onto their level.

"Kid, I'm gonna teach you the fear of true fury" roars the Raikage, his body crackling with intense lighting chakra energy.

"So, this is the Raikage, huh?" says Sasuke, his Sharingan blazing with fire. "Well, then...I guess I have no choice now." It looked like he would be doing the dirty work for Tobi after all.

**(outside)**

"Well Kiba?" asked Kakashi as the team had finally arrived.

Both Kiba and Akamaru sniff the cold air as the rest of the team await his analysis. "Yeah, I can smell Naruto's scent in there alright."

"Then we need to hurry then" says Yamato. "We can't let Danzo use Naruto for his own personal gain."

"Indeed..." agreed Sai. "Even if he's being controlled, I doubt Naruto would ever forgive himself for killing the other Kage."

"Wait..." says Kiba suddenly.

"Kiba, what's wrong?" asked Sakura.

"No way, this can't be...Akamaru, you can smell him too can't you?" asked Kiba, getting an arf from his partner.

"Kiba?" asked Kakashi.

Kiba looks back at them and says "I can smell Sasuke's scent inside as well."

Sakura's eyes go wide. "Sasuke...?"

"So what do we do now, Kakashi?" asked Yamato.

This was indeed a pickle for them. "Kiba, take us to Naruto's location first. We'll deal with that matter then we'll deal with Sasuke if the chance is still open to us."

"Right" says Kiba before leading the way.

_'But Sasuke...no, Kakashi-sensei is right. We need to get Naruto back first. Then we'll get Sasuke back as well and we'll all go home...together...' _thinks Sakura, unable to stop the conflict that was going on within her heart right now.

**(back inside, with the other Kage)**

"...Lord Hokage, the use of ninjutsu within this room at any point during this meeting is prohibited. You should know that. And because of this act, you have lost our trust. A shame too seeing as I might have still chosen you without you needing to resort to such tactics" says Mifune.

"But the "may" wasn't good enough I'm afraid" counters Danzo. "For the sake of this shinobi world we live in, I will do what ever it takes to safe guard it. So I assume that you all won't work with me now then?"

"And why would we do that?" asked the Tsuchikage. "It is as lord Mifune has just said. Your actions before have proven to us that you cannot be trusted anymore. And once word of this gets back to the Hidden Leaf, no one there will either and your bid for the title of Hokage shall come to an end."

"I see..." says Danzo as he closes his eyes, then gets to his feet. "I was afraid it would come to this and I had dearly hoped that this action wouldn't be necessary. But, in the end, I am left with little choice." Danzo then makes a whistling sound and the room is suddenly filled with an intense chakra.

"What...this chakra?" says the Mizukage.

_'It can't be...' _thinks Gaara as a shadow comes over them and a figure, unknown to all save Danzo and his people, falls down from the ceiling and lands on the spot Zetsu had appeared at before.

"Is that the Nine Tails Jinchuriki?" asked the Tsuchikage.

"Nine Tails, kill all of them" orders Danzo.

Naruto howls as he enters the four tailed state, as was how he was programmed to act in the mission, then turns his attention to Mifune and firing off a chakra claw out at Mifune who barely had time to bring his sword up and send his chakra into it so he could cut the chakra hand in half, saving himself.

"Danzo, you..." says Mifune before a chakra tail comes swinging in and hitting him, sending him slamming back against the wall.

"Lord Mifune" comes one of the samurai guard as they go after Naruto, who simply growls back at them before launching at them with his chakra covered hand raising up and preparing to strike them down. But a sudden wall of sand comes in between Naruto and the samurai, protecting them.

"Lord Kazekage?" says another of the samurai.

"Get Mifune out of here. We'll handle this" says Gaara before jumping atop the sand wall, looking to his friend. "Naruto, this isn't you. You need to break free of his control."

Naruto's response is to roar before multiple chakra claws explode out of him, racing towards Gaara who jumps clear while releasing more sand out to block and counter the various strikes. Gaara's eyes turn to Danzo, who remains still and watching with an unemotional face.

"What have you done to him?" yells Gaara.

"You of all people should know the answer to that, lord Kazekage, as you yourself use to be a Jinchuriki. Individual's like Naruto and yourself lost their human rights when they had a Tailed Beast sealed within them. You became weapons for your respective village, to be used when and if needed by the masses. A weapon that can't be controlled is a dangerous weapon, far to dangerous to keep. And so because of that, I made sure he could be controlled when the time came..."

"Damn you..." growls Gaara as some of the claws break around his sand, slamming Gaara into the ground.

"Then we have no choice then" says the Tsuchikage as he appears, floating in the air behind Naruto, with his small, aged hands being thrust out before him. "If we can't subdue him, then we'll have no other choice but to kill him."

Gaara, already recovering as the sand had moved in at the last second and saved him from serious injury, goes wide eyed as he sees something forming within the Tsuchikage's open hands. "Wait, don't..."

"Particle Style" says the old man as a cube of chakra forms around Naruto, first transparent then becoming solid and cover Naruto before a sizzling sound is heard as the ground shakes. A second later, the jutsu fades out and there is no sign of Naruto.

Seeing the Kazekage's stunned look, the oldest of the Kage simply looks at him and says "Sorry, brat. But there was no other..."

His words are cut off as the ground directly beneath him explodes outwards with chakra claws, catching him before he can move and enwrapping him. "Gramps..." yells Kurosutchi as she and Akitsuchi come running forward to help their kage, but Chojuro gets there first, using skill none would guess he had due to his sickly nature as he swings his blade, slicing easily through the claws and releasing the Tsuchikage while Ao jumps in and grabs the old man, pulling him clear.

As Naruto rises up from the ground, the Mizukage moves next as she intakes a deep breath. "Lava style; Molten Bath" before releasing a sea of burning rock out sending it slamming down on Naruto.

"Now for you" shouts Kankuro as he and Temari take the chance to go after Danzo while he was distracted by the current situation, but Foo and Torune jump in the way to guard their boss.

The molten rock rumbles, then blast outwards, forcing Gaara to cover the others with his sand to protect them from the super heated fragments falling as he sees Naruto, unhurt, finish pulling himself out of the hole in the ground. Naruto then howls as two more chakra tails emerge and he enters the six tailed state.

"Quit wasting time, Nine Tails. Kill them so we can proceed back to the Leaf and deal with the council" orders Danzo, knowing that he would now have to use force to insure his rise to Hokage be completed.

Naruto roars again, then opens his mouth as chakra of black and white begins to form inside, melding together as be powers up his Biju Dama. "Naruto...don't..." says Gaara, fearing he might have to get serious enough that he could kill Naruto in order to save him. Around Naruto, both the Tsuchikage and the Mizukage move to launch their own attacks off before Naruto could.

But just as Naruto closes his mouth, making his body bulge large, his head jerks skyward towards the ceiling. Everyone elses gaze follows his and sees what had caught his attention. "So, you have finally arrived here...Sasuke Uchiha..."

Sasuke, his head tilted downwards, switches his gaze between Danzo, his main target, and Naruto's six tailed form, his thoughts confused on what to make of this matter. "It would seem the Raikage wasn't able to deal with you. This is both unexpected...and quite bothersome."

"Danzo..." says Sasuke as his hand goes to rest on his blade's hilt. His eyes then shift back to Naruto as he ask "What did you do to him?"

"As I told the other Kage. I've simply placed a strong leash on our weapon to make sure he did as he was told when needed, nothing more" was Danzo's reply.

_'Itachi, my clan, and even...Naruto...'_ thinks Sasuke, his rage building by the second. For three years, he had thought his ties with his old team had been forever severed. Sure, there had been a part of him in the back of his mind that had thought that once this was all over, that he could go back and maybe be with them again. And seeing them come to Orochimaru's base that one time not to long ago for him had actually made him happy in a way, though he didn't show it. But following his fight with Itachi, that had all changed...or so he had thought. Seeing Naruto like this, being controlled like a mindless beast, it was creating a rage within him that nearly equaled the rage he had felt for Itachi. "DAMN YOU..."

Naruto opens his mouth, releasing the Biju Dama right at Sasuke, who barely has time to dodge it as the beam of chakra slams into the ceiling, blasting a hole to the outside. Naruto then moves his head, following Sasuke's movement's further slicing through the domed roof till the beam had ran out of energy. Sasuke, knowing what he needed to do, takes a chance to get in close as he activates his Mangekyou, planning to forcibly tame Naruto with his own power in order to save him from Danzo.

**(outside)**

The beam of chakra shooting out from the top of the structure does not go unnoticed by the newest arrived team. "Yosh, what was that?" asked Lee.

"Naruto, perhaps?" offered Choji.

"Ino, can you use your sensory abilities to confirm that it was him?" asked Shikamaru.

"I'm on it" says Ino, already tapping into her sensory skills.

"It is Naruto" said Hinata, no doubt present in her voice.

"But how can you be sure, Hinata?" asked Shino.

"Because...I feel it in my heart" was her response before moving forward. As the others follow her, Hinata chooses to forgo entering from ground level, instead she makes a beeline for the hole in the roof, knowing it was the quickest way to get to Naruto.

**(inside)**

"Man, look at all this damage" says Kiba, finding their way forward obstructed by fallen debris.

"I'll see if I can make..." Yamato is cut off as the rubble before them erupts and the Raikage rises up, looking none to pleased.

"Lord Raikage, are you alright?" asked Kakashi, moving over to him.

"Huh?" asked the Raikage, his attention turning to Kakashi. "That symbol. Ah, I know of you. Kakashi of the Sharingan; from the Leaf. Why are you here?"

"We learned that Danzo placed Naruto Uzumaki, our villages Jinchuriki under some potent brainwashing and brought him here to assassinate the Kage should they prove uncooperative with him here during the summit. We came to stop him and get Naruto back" explained Kakashi.

The Raikage's features, already angered filled, become even more so as lightning crackles all over him. "Why that damn...I'm gonna kill him."

"Lord Raikage, what about here?" asked Yamato.

"It was Sasuke Uchiha. He came to the summit with orders from the Akatsuki boss to assassinate all of us" says the Raikage.

Sakura goes wide eyed from hearing that, tears beginning to form as she says "No, not Sasuke..." She wouldn't believe it. Just like with what they had been told about Sasuke aiding in the capturing of the Eight Tails. She couldn't believe it as believing it would mean the chances of getting him back where he belonged were even less likely than ever before. And that thought was just to heart breaking for her to bare.

The Raikage, seeing the look of pain in her eyes, scowls and says "Regardless, we need to get moving. If what you say is true, then we have a lot of problems that need to clean up before this day is done."

And with that, the Raikage leads the Leaf ninja to the meeting hall.

**(Naruto and Sasuke)**

Naruto roared as he sent multiple chakra claws shooting out and racing towards Sasuke, who easily dodged them as he continued to bring Naruto under control with his ocular powers. But it was quickly becoming clear to Sasuke that something was wrong. Before, when they had been reunited at Orochimaru's lair, Sasuke's eyes had been able to repress Naruto's Nine Tails chakra with ease, but now it wasn't having any affect at all, even with him using the Mangekyou which was suppose to make taming the Nine Tails easy.

Sand grabs hold of Naruto' legs, yanking hard and sending his falling onto the ground while both the Mizukage unleashed a water style jutsu and the Tsuchikage an earth style jutsu to help aid in stopping Naruto. Clearly, it was an odd situation. Sasuke had come here to kill them...well, Danzo mainly though Zetsu had told them that they would just be collateral. And yet, here they were working with their would be assassin in trying to stop the would be Hokage's own attempt at assassinating them.

Funny how the world works sometimes, huh?

_'I don't get it'_ thinks Sasuke as Naruto breaks free of the sand, jumps clear of the water blast and the rising earth that was to further pin him down while simultaneously firing off mini chakra blast in every which direction. Sasuke and the Kage dodge the attacks before they are all caught off guard by the follow up strike of chakra claws, pinning them hard against the wall. _'Why aren't my eyes working?'_

Having seen Sasuke's Sharingan and figuring that his thoughts must be wrapped in confusion, Danzo says "Do you really think I wouldn't have placed safe guards on him to insure he couldn't be stopped when like this?"

Sasuke scowls at him as Naruto begins to increase the pressure on them all, saying "Damn you" as his body is enveloped by a sea of purple chakra, his eyes flaring to life as he activates his Susano'o. So great is its power that it allows Sasuke to free himself, then sending the Susano'o's hand swing out and knocking Naruto into the air, breaking the kage free from being crushed as well.

"Lord Danzo, I sense Kakashi has arrived along with several others from the village and they are heading here right now with the Raikage" says Foo.

"Then we shall depart then" says Danzo, already moving to the opening along the wall made by Naruto's Biju Dama attack before. "The situation here is lost I'm afraid and now I must take extreme action to insure the future stability of the ninja world."

"Wait..." yells Gaara, already moving along with the Tsuchikage to go after Danzo and stop him.

Danzo stops at the crack, looks back, and says "Kill them, Nine Tails, and be quick about it. Then catch up with us afterwords." And with that, they were gone.

"DANZO..." roars Sasuke, already going give chase as well when Naruto appears at the spot Danzo had exited from, already preparing another Biju Dama. Sasuke and the kage prepare to stop him, but Naruto it seems was already preparing this before he had even moved into their path. He opens his mouth to fire.

But a sudden shadow shoots from the ground, wrapping around Naruto's face and jerking it to the side as he releases his latest attack, making it slice harmlessly into the upper wall sections of the meeting room. A second later, Hinata and her team land in the room from above.

"Sasuke..." cries Ino, not expecting to see him.

"Yosh, what has happened to Naruto?" asked Lee, seeing Naruto in the six tailed state for the first time.

"Shino, can you use your beetles to siphon off that chakra?" asked Shikamaru.

"Sorry, but that's to big of a job for even them to handle" admits Shino.

Hinata looks at Naruto, seeing his warped face, as a tear forms in her eyes. "Horrible...why would anyone do something like this to you, Naruto?"

She clenches her fist in anger, seeing Naruto like this. Being control like some mindless beast. The very thought filled her with an anger she didn't know she could feel. "Wait, you need to back off" yells Gaara. "In his current state, he will..."

"I won't run" says Hinata. "I won't ever run away again. Not her, now, not when he's in pain like he is."

Sasuke looked at her, sees the strength and determination in her eyes, and recalls what he had seen from the images that Zetsu had shown them of Pain's attack on the Leaf. For some reason, it made him feel that she could do it, something that even he didn't seem to be capable of. Stopping Naruto and...

"Hinata, I'll leave stopping him to you" says Sasuke as his Susano'o fades out. "I'll go after Danzo and bring him back to face justice and to undo what he's done if needed."

"Just make sure you do" was her reply and Sasuke nods before heading to the crack in the wall where Karin appears, waiting for him. He stops just long enough so she can jump on his back before heading outside. This way, he could recover his chakra through her while being on the move.

"Hey, Sasuke..." says Ino before looking at Shikamaru and asking "Shouldn't we go with him or at least some of us to back him up?"

"First, Naruto..." says Shikamaru.

Naruto growls as Hinata begins to walk towards him. "Naruto, things have been so busy these last few days that I never got a chance to say thank you. When Pain attacked the village, you came and saved us and finally showed everyone just how strong you are. But not just the physical, but how strong your heart is. I wish I could be more like that, just as strong as you. But whenever I try to catch up to you, I always end up falling short..."

"Hinata..." says Lee, feeling himself tearing up and sniffling a little.

Shino, for his part, was wondering something that should have been an obvious question to everyone in the room. Why were they all just standing around like idiots, doing nothing except for Hinata?

Naruto growls again as he backs away a step while Hinata continues moving forward, saying "But I won't stop trying to catch up to you, won't stop wanting to walk by your side. I'll keep moving forward like you do, Naruto. I'll never give up. That's what you've taught me..."

Hinata then raises an arm up and Naruto, thinking it was some sort of attack, sends one of his chakra tails swinging outwards, aiming it to hit her. At the same moment, as Hinata's team go to move to get to her before the attack can land, Kakashi's team arrives with the Raikage and see this.

And Sakura, fearing that Hinata was about to be sent flying, yells out "Hinata, get back. He's..."

But the attack doesn't land; instead stopping just an inch away from her face. It wasn't because of Shikamaru's shadow jutsu not because of Ino's mind control powers. Gaara's sand also wasn't causing it either nor any other sort of external force. No, it had somehow been Naruto himself who had stopped his own attack.

A quiet falls on the room as Hinata's hand comes to rest on Naruto's chakra covered face. "Like I said before, Naruto. I'll never run away ever again. And the reason why is..." She then wraps his head in a loving hug. "Because I love you, Naruto. Nothing can or will ever change that truth."

And deep within Naruto, his mind had been awake and he had been struggling, in vain, to free himself from Danzo's control. But is was only here, only now, that he found himself getting the strength needed to succeed. The chakra tails break apart and fade as Naruto returns to normal, though unconscious.

Ino is there in a second, already putting her medical jutsu skills to work while the Mizukage is using her own knowledge to help aid her. "Is it over?" wondered Shikamaru.

The Tsuchikage goes over to Naruto and says "Once we can remove Danzo's brainwashing, then it will be..."

"Then can I count on you to do it, Tsuchikage?" asked the Raikage.

"It may take me a while, but it will be done" was the old man's reply.

"Fine, then I'm going after Sasuke then" says the Raikage, already moving to the crack heading outside.

"We'll come along if that's fine" offers Kakashi as he and Yamato fall in behind the Raikage, who simply nods.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid I can't allow that yet" comes a voice, making them all look up as Tobi appeared in the room. "I'd rather you let Sasuke deal with Danzo before you get involved. Besides, I have an offer to talk with you all about."

Shino was already preparing to send his beetles out when he takes notice of something important. Sakura wasn't over with Ino and the Tsuchikage, healing Naruto while his headed rested on Hinata's lap. In fact, Kiba, Akamaru, Sai, and even Lee were no where to been seen.

Outside, Kiba led the way as he asked "You sure about this, Sakura?"

"Yeah, Ino and the Mizukage together can heal Naruto. Besides..."

"We can't let Sasuke escape this time, right?" asked Sai.

"Then let us get to him and bring him back home" says Lee, who had seen them heading after Sasuke and had followed, figuring it was better than just standing around doing nothing.

As they move, Sakura can't help but feel a little conflicted about what had just occurred. Naruto, while in the four tailed state, had thought nothing of lashing out at her before. But here, in the six tailed state, he had stopped himself from lashing out at Hinata.

While Sakura was glad that Naruto hadn't attacked her, injured her, she still couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy there. Why had Naruto been able to attack her and not Hinata? What existed between them that was missing between...well, them? She didn't understand why it was, but she knew that somewhere deep inside, it made her sad.

She push's those thoughts away as she knew where her attention needed to be now; on Sasuke and only on Sasuke.

**Fin...**

**AN: **Well, that's that. I admit that this isn't my best work as I feel I could have done better, but I hope it suffices. And to be honest, I have some things going on right now that are acting as an unwanted distraction. Thing's I hope will get resolved rather quickly too.

Anyways, unless anyone has any other recommendations, the next chapter will be about Naruto being Hinata's Jonin sensei and this chapter with have some forbidden student/teacher stuff going on too.


End file.
